This Earth Day, Meet "Garbage Warrior" Michael Reynolds

Today is the perfect day to introduce you to the "Garbage Warrior" (no, not because It's Take Your Kids to Work Day, because it's Earth Day). Out from under a pile of bicycle and recycling matter comes this guy, who builds houses, or "Earthships," out of garbage, making those of us who dared to believe we were good environmentalists feel like there's probably a little more we could be doing to lessen our carbon footprint. Best expressed in photos, the man behind the movement… (But, first, a brief vocab lesson.)

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Earthship n. 1. passive solar home made of natural and recycled materials 2. thermal mass construction for temperature stabilization. 3. renewable energy & integrated water systems make the Earthship an off-grid home with little to no utility bills.

Biotecture n. 1. the profession of designing buildings and environments with consideration for their sustainability. 2. A combination of biology and architecture.

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<> Kentucky-bred Reynolds (above) is described as the ultimate renegade architect, and uses piled-up tires filled with dirt, sand and straw to form walls and discarded appliances and pallets to form foundations and roofing for homes.

The Mexico-based architect has focused much of his efforts in tsunami- and hurricane-ruined communities in India and Mexico, where his projects have been positively received. The above hut is located in Taos, New Mexico.

<>This is what it look likes inside an Earthship. You can see the cast-off clear bottles lining the walls, but you can't see the self-contained green house and the many other energy-reducing construction components that are known to drive utility bills down to $50 a month..

But, as per usual, where there's a man building houses with garbage, there's a skeptical corporation or authoritarian. Since Reynold's structures defy state standards for what houses should be, Earthship Biotecture has met some resistance.

Lucky for us, all the pioneering and drama is captured in a documentary called Garbage Warrior, which you can buy here. Happy Earth Day!